Wednesday

Jan 30, 2008 at 12:01 AMJan 30, 2008 at 12:32 AM

Now that they have an organization that’s been built with genuine Kraftsmanship and a team that plays in the house that Bob built, it appears as though generations of Foxboro’s football faithful will never know the way we were in New England.

His left arm resting on a Patriots helmet, the Vince Lombardi Trophy at his side, the team owner appeared on the cover of the Sept. 19, 2005, edition of the magazine, behind words proclaiming, “The Best Team In Sports: How Robert Kraft Built The Patriots Into A Football Dynasty.”

Not bad considering that, for many of the years B.K. – Before Kraft – the Patriots were more likely to be featured on the cover of Mad behind that magazine’s mascot, Alfred E. Neuman.

Now that they have an organization that’s been built with genuine Kraftsmanship and a team that plays in the house that Bob built, it appears as though generations of Foxboro’s football faithful will never know the way we were in New England.

Newfound pride

“I take a lot of pride in this organization and the fact that I’m part of it,” Patriots head coach Bill Belichick recently said. “I’m proud to be a New England Patriot. I’m proud to work for Robert Kraft and I’m proud to wear our insignia.”

Proud?

For years, a couple of other “p” words – pathetic and pitiful come to mind – were associated with the Patriots.

Proud? Hardly.

With a $325 million new stadium, a 1.3-million-square-foot mixed-use lifestyle center and entertainment complex and three Super Bowl rings, the Elvis-lookalike logo on Belichick’s gray hoodie has never had to endure the indignities the old Pat Patriot suffered.

Traipsing around from Boston University’s Nickerson Field to Fenway Park to Boston College’s Alumni Stadium to Harvard Stadium to Schaefer/Sullivan/ Foxboro Stadium, guided by the likes of head coaches with names like Rush and Rust under ownership that was often either financially overmatched (team founder Billy Sullivan) or downright misguided (Victor Kiam), old Pat observed far more losses than wins.

Times sure have changed.

They actually began to turn when James Busch Orthwein purchased controlling interest of the Patriots from Kiam in 1992 and hired Bill Parcells as head coach in January 1993, but even then, there was the fear that ultimately the team would
move to St. Louis.

Move averted

Then, in January 1994, Kraft, the owner of the long-since-outdated stadium the Patriots called home, forked over $172 million to keep the team in New England rather than accept the $75 million buyout offer that would have voided its stadium lease and paved the way for its move to the Midwest.

With that, football fortunes in Foxboro were forever changed.

In three years, Kraft’s Patriots were playing in a Super Bowl.

In another three years, Belichick was replacing Pete Carroll. If Kraft’s hiring of Carroll to replace Parcells was a mistake – and it was – his decision to summon Belichick (and vice president of player personnel Scott Pioli) has been nothing short of a football masterpiece.

Three titles

The 2001 Patriots brought the franchise’s first Super Bowl title to New England.

The 2003 and 2004 teams made it a run of three Super Bowl championships in four seasons.

Now, the Pats are back, a game away from their fourth Vince Lombardi Trophy in seven seasons and an NFL first – a 19-0 finish.

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